Preventing bullying at school

Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school-aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. Some students use their power, such as physical strength, access to embarrassing information, or popularity, to control or harm others. Bullying behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time.

Bullying is any action that:

Causes a student to fear harm to themselves or their belongings

Harms a student's physical or mental health

Affects a student's grades or class participation

Affects a student's desire or ability to take part in school activities

Where, when, and how these actions happen determine if they are considered bullying. Schools are required to take action if any of these actions happen:

During any school-sponsored education program or activity

While in school, on school property, on school buses or other school vehicles, at designated school bus stops waiting for the school bus, or at school-sponsored or school-sanctioned events or activities

Through the spread of information from a school computer, a school computer network, or other similar electronic school equipment

Through the spread of information from a non-school computer or electronic device if the bullying causes a substantial disruption at school (under certain circumstances)

Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying is also against the law. A cyberbully uses technology or electronic communication to bully someone else. Cyberbullying includes:

Directly communicating with someone through instant messages or internet communications

Impersonating a person on a webpage or weblog

Posting information on an electronic platform, like a website, that more than one person can see

Stopping bullying at school

It is important that schools prevent bullying because:

Bullying makes a school’s climate and culture negative and unsafe for everyone

Bullying prevents students from focusing on learning

Bullying can harm mental health and emotional wellbeing, can negatively affect academic performance, and has been linked to harmful behaviors for bullies and the students being bullied

School districts are required to take action to stop bullying from happening. Some of these actions include:

Creating rules about bullying

Making sure that students and parents/guardians know about the bullying rules

Sending the bullying policy to the State Board of Education

Reviewing the bullying rules every 2 years and posting the results on their website

The Illinois State Board of Education is in charge of watching over each school district to make sure they do these things.

School districts are required to take action to stop bullying as soon as it happens. Some of these actions include:

Investigating reports of bullying within 10 days

Notifying parents/guardians or students involved in bullying

Before schools use suspension and expulsion to address bullying, trying to solve the situation using:

School social or counseling work services

Social-emotional skill building

School psychological services

Community-based services

Restorative measures

Bias-based bullying

Students report that most of the bullying they experience is motivated by bias or discrimination based on certain characteristics such as:

Race

Gender

Sexuality

Additionally, students report that bad outcomes, such as depression, increased absences from school, and lack of school engagement, increase significantly as the number of personal characteristics involved in bullying increases.

It is against the law to bully anyone based on:

Race

Color

Religion

Sex

National origin

Ancestry

Age

Marital status

Physical or mental disability

Military status

Unfavorable discharge from military service

Sexual orientation

Gender-related identity or expression

Association with a person or group with one or more of the characteristics mentioned

Any other distinguishing characteristic

Bullying someone based on any of those characteristics may also count as discrimination that violates other laws as well. Therefore, when bullying happens, school districts should find out if it was bias-based bullying.

How to report bullying

If you think your child is being bullied because of their race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, body shape or size, or any other distinguishing characteristic, and the school district is not taking action to stop it, you can file a complaint. The bullying prevention policies of a majority of districts in Illinois list the names and contact information of 2 complaint coordinators. You can find your school’s bullying prevention policy in the Board Policy Manual, which is often online, or ask your school’s front office staff. For more information, you may contact Prevent School Violence Illinois’s website or call at (630) 884-8278.